11.7.5 Using CDLaTeX to enter math

CDLaTeX mode is a minor mode that is normally used in combination with a
major LaTeX mode like AUCTeX in order to speed-up insertion of
environments and math templates. Inside Org mode, you can make use of
some of the features of CDLaTeX mode. You need to install
cdlatex.el and texmathp.el (the latter comes also with
AUCTeX) from http://www.astro.uva.nl/~dominik/Tools/cdlatex.
Don't use CDLaTeX mode itself under Org mode, but use the light
version org-cdlatex-mode that comes as part of Org mode. Turn it
on for the current buffer with M-x org-cdlatex-mode RET, or for all
Org files with

(add-hook 'org-mode-hook 'turn-on-org-cdlatex)

When this mode is enabled, the following features are present (for more
details see the documentation of CDLaTeX mode):

Environment templates can be inserted with C-c {.

The <TAB> key will do template expansion if the cursor is inside a
LaTeX fragment1. For example, <TAB> will
expand fr to \frac{}{} and position the cursor
correctly inside the first brace. Another <TAB> will get you into
the second brace. Even outside fragments, <TAB> will expand
environment abbreviations at the beginning of a line. For example, if
you write ‘equ’ at the beginning of a line and press <TAB>,
this abbreviation will be expanded to an equation environment.
To get a list of all abbreviations, type M-x cdlatex-command-help RET.

Pressing _ and ^ inside a LaTeX fragment will insert these
characters together with a pair of braces. If you use <TAB> to move
out of the braces, and if the braces surround only a single character or
macro, they are removed again (depending on the variable
cdlatex-simplify-sub-super-scripts).

Pressing the backquote ` followed by a character inserts math
macros, also outside LaTeX fragments. If you wait more than 1.5 seconds
after the backquote, a help window will pop up.

Pressing the single-quote ' followed by another character modifies
the symbol before point with an accent or a font. If you wait more than
1.5 seconds after the single-quote, a help window will pop up. Character
modification will work only inside LaTeX fragments; outside the quote
is normal.

Footnotes

[1] Org mode has a method to test if the cursor is
inside such a fragment, see the documentation of the function
org-inside-LaTeX-fragment-p.